Photo By Sgt. Eric Glassey | Sparky, the mascot of the Fort Carson Fire Department, Directorate of Emergency...... read more read more
Subscribe
FORT CARSON, Colo. - Chicago suffered a devastating fire Oct. 9, 1871, as a blaze that started in a barn spread to four square miles, consuming parts of downtown killing 300 people and leaving 500,000 people homeless.
Since that time, firefighters have worked to educate the public to prevent fires of this kind from taking so many lives and destroying property.
“What we’re doing is recognizing Fire Prevention Week, and this year’s theme is ‘Smoke Detectors Save Lives,’” said Patrick Rodriguez, fire inspector, Fort Carson Fire Department, Directorate of Emergency Services. “So we come out to the schools and the different venues on post such as the (Exchange) and the child care centers to educate the younger kids on fire prevention measures.”
The Fort Carson Fire Department reached more than 2,500 children across post during Fire Prevention Week, Oct. 6-10, 2014. Rodriguez hopes that sharing this information with them early in life will help them keep their homes safe now and prepare them for when they get older.
“We try to reach them at this age so when they are older they have some of these skills such as testing smoke detectors and to keep their homes as fire-safe as they can be,” Rodriguez said.
The impact the fire inspector and firefighters have while visiting schools can have a lasting impression.
“I remember growing up as a kid and having firefighters visit the schools,” said Matthew Piercy, firefighter, Fort Carson Fire Department. “I enjoyed it as a kid and here I am now … paying it forward. I think it is one of the most rewarding parts of the job.”
Another vital part of this year’s Fire Prevention Week is teaching children how to service and maintain the smoke detectors so they can share that information with their parents.
“We take smoke detectors and show the children how to test and operate them so they won’t be afraid of them, and hopefully pass that on to their parents when they get home,” Rodriguez said. “We also teach them about testing their smoke detectors at home every 30 days, and how to change the batteries every six months.”
| Date Taken: | 10.08.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 11.06.2014 22:46 |
| Story ID: | 147300 |
| Location: | FORT CARSON, COLORADO, US |
| Web Views: | 30 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Firefighters sound alarm for smoke detectors, by SGT Eric Glassey, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
